Revenge and Redemption
by RainGeist
Summary: “There’s no way in hell that you’re meeting him on your own, Hermione!” My eyes flashing dangerously, I hissed, “There’s no other way. I can’t pass up an opportunity like this, Harry. You cannot stop me. Don’t bother trying.” Post HBP. AU. DM/HG
1. Contemplation

Revenge and Redemption

Chapter one: Contemplation

Disclaimer: I am not J.K. Rowling, therefore any characters you may recognize do not belong to me. This plot, however, does.

The wind and rain whipped my hair as I briskly strode my way across the street. Cars zoomed near me, their bright lights casting shadows in the darkness that engulfed muggle London. As I searched for the coffee shop, I contemplated what had transpired earlier:

"_There's no way in hell that you're meeting him on your own, Hermione!" _

_His facial expression was grim. Underlying his anger I saw worry staring back at me, but as much as I appreciated his concern, it would not deter me. I thought of that red hair and his dazzling smile. His death had been the last straw. _

_My eyes flashing dangerously, I hissed, "There's no other way. I can't pass up an opportunity like this, Harry. You cannot stop me. Don't bother trying."__With that, I tightened my coat around me and walked out of Grimmauld place, leaving a shocked and concerned Harry Potter behind me. _

I understood why Harry did not come after me. I did not want him to, and he understood that it would do no good to do so. A verbal battle I would obviously win, and a physical one would only hurt us both. I had been training vigorously for years, now. I was definitely his match when we dueled, often even besting him.

After the death of Ron, I had been heartbroken…and angry. While the years had slowly ebbed the piercing heartbreak I felt after his demise, the anger has yet to dissipate. It will not do so until every one of those miserable bastards pays for what they did to him-- in blood.

No, we had not been together at the time. We never got the chance to be, as we been on the run trying to find and destroy horcruxes, while at the same time fighting off the Death Eaters in our midst. Though we had both realized that there might never be a relationship beyond that of friendship, the potential was there.

And that was what brought up the anger: the idea that his life was terminated forevermore, and as a result of my own incompetence, no less. It was more than I could bear. He had not deserved such a cruel and miserable death. No one-- at least on our side of the war-- deserved that. I admit, beyond heartbreak and anger, I felt the undeniable gut-wrenching pain of guilt and shame. Hell, I still feel it.

However, I forever the logical person-- realize that while I was indirectly a cause of his death, the direct causes were those miserable, spineless Death Eaters. Oh, yes, I understood that clearly. They took away one of the most precious individuals in my life. Thus, I will take away the individual that they revere most: Voldemort, their so-called Dark Lord whom they bow down to, and would lick the shoes of should he ever be so inclined to ask. Pathetic.

Unconsciously narrowing my eyes in fierce abandon, I thought about what I would do to them. They would feel the pain that I felt, and more. They had a debt with me. I would charge them for that, and add interest to boot.

Yes, I-- Hermione Granger, Gryffindor goody-two-shoes, follower of justice, and advocate of all that is noble and good-- am out for revenge.

Getting out of my rather deliciously sadistic reverie, I glanced to the left and finally spotted the small, almost hidden, coffee shop where we had agreed to meet. A smile, one that did not quite reach my eyes, slowly graced my face. It is a smile that glows of triumph, as well as a smile of bitterness and hatred.

To the average onlooker, it may look like a normal smile, but to those who know me well, this smile speaks volumes. It means that I am one step closer to an ultimatum. One that will unite myself and a current important Death Eater in fight to destroy the infamous Lord Voldemort. A fight I plan to win.

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A/N: This is the first chapter! I expect that the upcoming chapters will be longer, so no need to worry. I appreciate the time you took to read my story, and I would be very grateful for some criticism to improve my writing. Please review!


	2. Curiosity Killed the Cat

Revenge and Redemption

Chapter Two: Curiosity Killed the Cat

Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I am not J.K. Rowling. Therefore, any characters you may recognize do not belong to me. I know, it sucks.

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_A striking, dark eagle owl tapped the window of my flat impatiently. How an unrecognizable owl found my flat, I could not fathom. I took extra precautions about hiding my whereabouts. _

_The owl glanced at me in a calculating way as I approached the window and unlatched it, allowing the bird to fly gracefully into my room. Perhaps it was not the most intelligent thing to do, but curiosity has always been my weakness. What can I say? Curiosity may have, indeed, killed the cat, but satisfaction brought it back. I live to be satisfied. _

_I untied the knot that held the letter to the owl's leg, and examined it closely. I performed a few routine spells to make sure it did not contain any curses, and then proceeded to observe the unique seal: a bat in flight. A vampire bat at that, if the short snout and fangs it was baring were any indications. Curious. _

_The owl stared at me expectantly, sticking out its leg, as if telling me to hurry up and get on with it. Deciding that a person clever, or desperate, enough to find me deserved my time, I opened the seal and read:_

Granger,

Do not be alarmed. I do not seek to harm you in any way or form. If I did, I would have done so the many times I have trailed you. I imagine you must be surprised at this, deeming yourself an astute and observant individual, and _perhaps_ you are, but slyness is in my nature, so do not worry yourself about it too much.--

_I bristled at this. How dare they presume to know me? They make me sound so arrogant! And then they have the audacity to throw out that they have been-- well, practically stalking me, in such a flippant manner! Not heeding their advice, I was beginning to panic. I kept reading. _

I have a proposal for you. Whether you choose to become my ally is entirely your decision, but I understand that the pathetic fools at the ministry are not getting any closer to defeating the Dark Lord, and that you are willing to take matters into your own hands. I believe that we may accomplish this faster if we work together. This will undoubtedly benefit both of us. I will not divulge my identity quite yet. That will be for you to discover should you agree to meet me. I will, however, reveal that I am a high ranked Death Eater, although you must have figured this out by now.--

_Too right, I have! No one other than a Death Eater refers to Voldemort as the "Dark Lord". As such, no bottom-feeder Death Eater would have been able to trail me without _my_ knowledge!…Wow, I do sound arrogant. Honestly, though, I'm not! If it's the truth I can't be considered arrogant, right? Maybe I am arrogant for simply believing that it is the truth…eh, I suppose it won't do to dwell on this right now. I shrugged and continued reading. _

As you will understand, no one can know about this, for both our sakes. I am rather fond of my skin, so I will ask you to refrain from telling anyone other than your precious Potter, whom you will probably notify as soon as you finish reading this. Obviously, I would much rather that no one know. I only do this so that you can trust that this is not a trap. Do not bring him along, but if you must, feel free to tell him about our meeting. Do not bother trying to show him this letter; it has been charmed so that only you can read it. Should you decide that you are willing to cooperate, meet me at the Caffè Chiaroscuro tomorrow night at 11:00 p.m. sharp.

Send a reply with my owl to let me know whether I should bother to show up or not. It will not leave until you do so, and the bird is somewhat temperamental, so I advise that you make haste.

Until tomorrow.

_There was no signature. Only a small stamp in the form of a bat. Interesting. I quickly pulled out some parchment and a quill and scribbled out "Agreed". I figured that simple statement was enough for now. Not to mention that the owl looked ready to attack me if I didn't hurry. Eager, really. "Somewhat temperamental" was definitely an understatement. I glared at it as I tied the note to its leg. It took flight and dug its talons on my arms as it pushed off. Bleeding ensued. It stopped at the window and stared at me, looking as smug as an owl possibly can. It hooted, as though laughing, then departed. I scowled. Stupid bird. _

xxx

I am drenched. The rainstorm did not abate while I was walking. Not that I minded. The rain is something that I have always appreciated. It's soothing. As I reached the door, I muttered a quick drying spell. I couldn't help but think that it had been a good idea to put my hair up. Had I not done so, the frizzy mess just may have scared off the big, bad Death Eater before I got a chance to talk to them. I chuckled.

My laugh died abruptly as I stepped into the café. The shop was oddly empty. Eerily so. Only a muggle was at the front counter, but he seemed to be in a kind of dazed trance. He did not acknowledge my presence. Seemingly unaware of it. I suppose I should have expected this. No Death Eater in their right mind would be so uncharacteristically trusting in public. They worked in packs, those _cowards_. Still, it seemed as though the room was creepy on purpose. Even the soft music seemed almost spooky with such an empty room. I shivered involuntarily.

I singled him out almost immediately. I hastened to cover up the shock I felt, not only from being able to recognize the Death Eater so quickly, but because of the individual's identity. He was sitting in a shadowed corner, clad in a black shirt and black trousers. A trench coat, also black, draped over his chair. As much as it disgusts and disturbs me to do so, I will admit that the look suits him. His attempt to blend in with the shadows was futile, however. Even in the semi-darkness where he sat, his pale, blonde hair was difficult to miss.

I had thought that this was a good idea, but I am beginning to question my judgment. Anything that includes _him_ cannot be good. I felt uneasy. Maybe I should have listened to Harry. No. This is important. More than my life is at stake here. This is my opportunity to change things for the better. To avenge the death of all those who had their lives stolen from them. To avenge Ron's death. Unfortunately, that sounds bizarre to my ears when I think that this will happen by cooperating with _him_.

He must have sensed that someone was watching him, for he looked up from the coffee he had been intently looking at, and our eyes locked. Cold silver to warm brown. He smirked. I remembered how it is his signature look, and oh, how I want to wipe it off his face! He continued to look at me, unabashedly. I took it as an invitation to sit with him and proceeded to walk to the table. My head held high.

This man is in Voldemort's inner circle. As intimidating as he may seem to the rest of the world, he would not intimidate _me_. It is not as though I can run out now, anyway. At least, not with my dignity intact. You know how much I prize my dignity. I'd rather die a painful death than lose it. Yeah, yeah, stubborn Gryffindor and all that. At least I don't deny it.

I gathered my wits and attempted to look as cool and collected as I could.

Bluntly, I said, "Draco Malfoy."

It was strange to address a person whom I had not spoken to since the battle at Hogwarts, almost five years ago. Ron had died in battle about two years afterwards. I couldn't help but be prejudiced against Malfoy. Even if he is serious about betraying Voldemort, which I am beginning to doubt, he is still a bloody pompous, ferret-faced prick. One who has murdered many times. He had to get to that high ranked position somehow, right?

He studied my face momentarily, and then nodded. "Hermione Granger," he mocked. "Take a seat."

I raised my eyebrow, but did so. He handed me a mug of coffee, which I stared at suspiciously. He noticed. Observant, that one.

"It's not poisoned you know. I would've spared myself the time and simply killed you when you came in if that were my intent."

Not very comforting words, but I suppose there was no point in beating around the bush. The gesture (if the coffee wasn't indeed poisoned) surprised me. Hell, I could use that coffee. The shock made my mouth rather dry. I sipped my coffee. Malfoy looked about nonchalantly, drinking his coffee. I let him do so, curious as to what he was looking for. When his silence continued, however, I figured I should say something.

"You know, Malfoy, we're _not_ actually here for coffee." Perhaps it is not the best time to use a condescending tone, but I am past caring. I am here strictly on business. And his silence was starting to disconcert me…but don't tell anyone.

His eyes narrowed slightly and I felt satisfaction upon detecting a flash of annoyance.

"Great deduction, Granger," he sneered. Ah, same old predictable Malfoy.

He then surprised me by sighing, running a hand through his hair, and muttering, "You're right, of course. I'm sure you have many questions. I'll answer them to the best of my ability. Just give me a minute to gather my thoughts."

Did I say predictable?

Silence. To say I am stunned would be an understatement. His body language spoke of defeat.

I could not handle this new side of Malfoy. It is too much of a change. I think I rather like the predictable Malfoy. As vile and utterly frustrating as that Malfoy may be, at least I know what to expect. I couldn't help myself, I had to ask.

"What are your intentions? Why are you doing this?"

Suddenly, his eyes blazed in anger. He spoke so softly that I barely, registered it.

"I have my reasons for doing this. I don't want to be part of it anymore. I will _not_ be part of it anymore. I will help you-- if you help me."

I stared at him incredulously. "You expect me to simply believe you? To trust you? I know that you know that I'll do absolutely everything in my power to get rid of this infestation of Death Eaters…perhaps for my own reasons as well. But I need something a bit more concrete if this arrangement is going to work.

"You say that you have a reason. I need to know it in order to believe you. I won't be made a fool of."

"Isn't the fact that you're not dead right now enough reason to believe me? I said I have my reasons!" he spat.

"And I told _you _that I need more tangible proof! Your statement about how I am alive does not prove anything except that you obviously have no qualms about killing! Forgive me if I don't take comfort in that!" I sneered sarcastically.

"I need a _reason_," I persisted. He glowered at me.

With a sudden movement, he stood up. He towered over me since I was still sitting, a bit shaken at his response. Apparently he towered over me even when I did stand up, as I noted when he pulled me up roughly from my chair, and before I could protest, apparated us away.

My last thought before I felt the familiar pull and contracting feeling caused by apparation was: perhaps curiosity killed the cat after all.

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A/N: Sorry for the cliffhanger, but I thought it was best to end the chapter there. Thanks for the reviews so far! I don't want to pressure anyone to review, but I'm going to try to wait for at least five reviews before I update again. I really would like some feedback.


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